Deriv Names New CTO to Lead AI-Native Workflow Shift
The firm aims to automate 75% of manual processes by 2026 by deploying software agents that can improve their own output.
Updated on Oct. 22, 2026 in Artificial Intelligence
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Deriv has promoted Rotimi Akinyele, its former VP of Security, to the position of Chief Technology Officer. The company is currently shifting toward an AI-native operational model as it seeks to automate a majority of its manual internal workflows.
Why it matters
This leadership transition signals a pivot toward recursive AI development, where the firm aims to build software processes capable of self-improving through agentic workflows. The move is a central component of a broader strategy to overhaul efficiency across its international AI and data hubs.
Deriv currently employs a SecAI bot integrated with Claude-3.7 and AWS GuardDuty to process security alerts. The company intends to scale this architecture to develop software processes where autonomous agents iteratively refine their own outputs.
The players
Rotimi Akinyele
The newly appointed CTO of Deriv who previously managed information security for Dubai Holding and a government authority in Ras Al Khaimah.
Deriv
A financial brokerage firm maintaining AI and data infrastructure hubs in Malta, Dubai, and Malaysia.
The details
The firm operates AI and data hubs across Malta, Dubai, and Malaysia to facilitate its transition to an AI-native model. Akinyele’s new mandate involves structuring development cycles where artificial intelligence systems monitor and optimize their own execution metrics. Staff members at these locations are participating in weekly training sessions to integrate these emerging AI tools into their existing workflows.
Timeline
July 2024: Rotimi Akinyele joined Deriv as VP of Security.
October 22, 2026: Deriv officially announced the promotion of Akinyele to CTO.
End of 2026: Target deadline for automating 75% of manual workflows.
The Tech Race
Deriv is positioning itself alongside other financial entities moving toward aggressive automation in their internal software development pipelines. This move tracks with the industry-wide push to leverage LLM-based agents for long-term operational efficiency.
Employees at the company's Malta, Dubai, and Malaysia hubs will move to a new development workflow involving weekly AI training. The firm aims for a 75% reduction in manual tasks by the end of 2026, which will fundamentally change daily operational requirements for technical staff.
The takeaway
Deriv is betting that internal software development can be optimized by agents capable of iterative self-improvement. Watch for the company's progress toward its 75% automation target as the primary benchmark for the success of its AI-native strategy by the end of 2026.
Further reading
Explore the latest trends in autonomous systems and software development at Artificial Intelligence.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Finance Magnates.
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